


Nevermore

by Meteorstar



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Caliginous Romance | Kismesis, F/F, F/M, Flushed Romance | Matesprits, Humanstuck, M/M, Pale Romance | Moirallegiance, Sadstuck, or at least the human version of kismesitude
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-13
Updated: 2014-12-24
Packaged: 2018-02-08 15:24:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1946247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meteorstar/pseuds/Meteorstar
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Woot badly translated Japanese! The first thing Damara says is supposed to be something along the lines of "Hello, my name is Damara Megido, you must be Tavros. You're a little hottie aren't you?" Osuushi translates to bull. And then "Anata wa watashi no basho de, ashita watashi ga hyōji sa remasu." is supposed to be something along the lines of "Yes, we will meet at my place tommorow." Hope that cleared some stuff up for you!</p>
        </blockquote>





	1. Raven

There he was.

There he sat, beneath a tree, a teenage boy smoking what appeared to be a cigarette at the distance, dressed in a black raggedy hoody and torn up jeans. His black-brown hair cascaded gently down his head, messy curls strewn across his shoulders. His most striking feature, however, was the white and gray clown patterned make up plastered against the light olive skin on his face.

Tavros wheeled closer to the boy, his wheelchair stalling occasionally on the grass. He knew he wasn't supposed to talk to strangers, but despite his obvious strength, the boy looked helpless. He looked around the park, trying to spot his older brother, and found him sitting on a bench trying to impress a girl. Tavros smirked, then turned his attention back to the boy. He wheeled over to the dark-haired boy, slowly and cautiously, not wanting to alarm him. The boy just stared at the sky, watching the clouds. He didn't seem like a mean person, just a little.. spacey. Tavros slowly made his way over to the boy, who remained still, staring at the ever-changing clouds.

"U-um.. Hi.."

The boy jumped, and looked over, his half-closed eyes were bloodshot, and his irises were a striking violet. "Woah mother fucker, way to all up and scare a fucker like that, bro."

"Oh, um, sorry... I didn't mean to, uh, startle you..." Tavros trailed off.

The dark-haired boy's expression changed, from startled to a look of... Pity? Apologetic? Tavros couldn't put his finger on it, but he know that this boy meant no harm to him. "Naw man, it's all up and chill, bro, there ain't no need to apologize," he assured, a wide, toothy grin spreading across his face.

Tavros felt slightly uneasy around the seemingly older boy, he just seemed a little _too_ happy. "So, uh, what are you doing here? N-not to be rude or anything..." Tavros was overly shy, especially when it came to meeting new people.

"I'm just all up an' sittin' here, watchin' the mother fuckin' sky, all up an' bootin' the gong," he replied, the absent look and toothy grin staying present on his painted face.

Tavros took the opportunity of the dark-haired boy looking away to catch a glance at his brother, who was still chatting with a girl who appeared to be of Japanese origin. He sighed, Rufioh finally comes back from college to visit for a limited amount of time, and all he does is chat with girls he knows from his university.

The Nitram turned his attention back to the dark-haired boy, who had gone back to staring at the sky. "So, where are you from?" he asked, but the boy paid no attention, and had began smoking again. Tavros figured he had lost him, and he wheeled back Rufioh, who ruffled his hair, saying, "Speak of the devil, it's my lil' man!" It appeared that he had been talking about Tavros to this girl. "This is Damara. She doesn't speak much English, but she knows enough to get by here, and I'm sure you two will hopefully be able to get along.

"Kon'nichiwa. Watashinonamaeha damara hito Megidodeari, anata wa Tavrosdenakereba narimasen. Anata wa hijō ni chīsana yutanpoda, anatade wanaidesu ka?" she asked speedily, winking at the last sentence.

"Uhh..." was all Tavros could muster, seeing as the only language besides English he spoke was Spanish, and even that he wasn't entirely fluent in.

"Damara, not all of us are fluent in Japanese. You know English, so please use English," Rufioh childed.

Damara rolled her maroon eyes, and said, "Hello, my name is Damara Megido. You must be Tavros."

Tavros nodded, "Yeah, I'm Tavros. Um, hi Damara."

"Well hello, little osuushi," she grinned.

Tavros had no idea what _osuushi_ meant, but he assumed it meant something good. "Uh, thanks?"

Rufioh jumped up, noticing the sun was beginning to dip down into the horizon. "We've got to go home. See you tommorow?" he motioned towards Damara.

Damara dipped her head slightly. "Anata wa watashi no basho de, ashita watashi ga hyōji sa remasu."

Rufioh carried Tavros into the back seat of the van, folding up the wheelchair and putting it in the trunk. Before they drove off, the caw of a raven alerted him, and he caught one last glance of the boy he had met that day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woot badly translated Japanese! The first thing Damara says is supposed to be something along the lines of "Hello, my name is Damara Megido, you must be Tavros. You're a little hottie aren't you?" Osuushi translates to bull. And then "Anata wa watashi no basho de, ashita watashi ga hyōji sa remasu." is supposed to be something along the lines of "Yes, we will meet at my place tommorow." Hope that cleared some stuff up for you!


	2. Nightengale

Tavros lay restlessly in his bed. It seemed nigh impossible for him to sleep, for images of the strange boy ran through his head, distracting him from his slumber. He realized that he hadn't even gotten the boy's name, nor had he shared his. His mind began playing at various scenarios as to why the boy was there, some of them far more terrifying than the rest, as he had done when he had lost his legs.

The memory was a painful reminder, though he could easily remember it as if it had only occurred but an evening before. It was back when he and Vriska were still dating. It was a very bumpy relationship, and they often fought, though it was more Vriska teasing him, and he mostly just taking the blunt of it. But one day, they had gone on a date, they were to have a romantic dinner on a cliff. However, Vriska began pushing him around, daring him to jump. She pushed him, she _pushed_ him off the edge, and he cascaded slowly in a downward spiral. The pain was immense, he couldn't feel his legs past his kneecaps. He looked down, and was horrified to see his legs both bent in a completely wrong direction, the broken bone showing through his torn skin and muscle. Blood was everywhere, and he was just so overwhelmed by it all that he passed out.

He didn't remember much of what happened after that, they had him on so many painkillers it was all just a blur. Rufioh even skipped his classes and came all the way from Texas to see him, and he cared for him for quite a while after he got out, also telling him what had happened while he was all drugged up. Apparently Vriska, with tears in her good eye, had carried him all the way to the hospital, constantly claiming that she just wanted to make him more confident. Needless to say, they broke up after that. as for what the doctors did, essentially, the doctors couldn't save his legs and had to amputate them from just above the kneecaps. He had to make sure to stretch his legs out by kneading at the skin and muscle, being careful not to push too hard.

His mouth felt dry, the memory had drained him, as it was not a time he liked to think about. He sat up, pulling his wheelchair towards him, and shifted himself carefully into it. His family owned a small, two story house, but unfortunately, the house wasn't built for a cripple, as all the bedroom were on the second floor. Since he couldn't get to the kitchen on his own, Rufioh and his other brothers and sisters made sure that Tavros had several cups in the second floor bathroom to keep his thirst sated. He wheeled into the bathroom, turning on the faucet and watched the cool, clear water cascade in a shower into his cup.

When he came back, after letting the cool liquid fall down his throat, he pulled one of his many books from the shelf. Reading was a favorite pastime of his, as he needed absolutely no help to do it, and his disability made seemingly boring activities such as this that much more interesting to him, as he couldn't do much. He plopped himself onto the bed, setting the glass on the bedside table, and began reading, clearing all the images except for the ones the book elicited from his mind, and he slowly began to fall asleep, book in hand.


	3. Jay

Tavros awoke to his noisy younger sister, Nina, trying to force him to wake up.

"Hey Tavros, wanna play, wanna play? No one else will play with me, come on, let's go!" she urged, bouncing up and down and shaking him awake.

Tavros yawned and sat up. "Hold on, I haven't even eaten yet, let me get up," he scolded the energetic six-year old.

Nina rolled her eyes, "Fiiiiine," and got off the teenager, exiting the room.

Now that his sister was out of the room, Tavros began stretching his legs. He kneaded the stumps with his palms, rubbing at every area until his hands began cramping up. Then he stretched out his arms, and reached for his wheelchair, which Nina had accidentally pushed farther away from the bed by accident. He managed to pull himself into the chair, and wheeled over to his older sister, Jesenia, who was waiting for him. She brushed a hand through her auburn hair, and had Rufioh pick Tavros up, and she picked the chair up, and they both carried their luggage downstairs.

At the table, their father and mother, their older brother Ander, and Nina were waiting. It seemed that mom had made her famous pancakes again, and as Tav was placed back in his chair, he eagerly rolled to the table, digging his knife and fork into the pancake, cutting the soft bread easily, inserting the food in his mouth, savoring every drop of syrup in the bite. "Mmm.. Mom, your pancakes are delicious, as always!" he complimented, grinning.

"Oh, you're simply too kind, Tavros!" his mom smiled back at the compliment.

After finishing his meal, the paraplegic turned to Rufioh, "Hey Rufioh, do you think you could take Nina and me to the park?"

Rufioh shook his head, "Sorry Tav, I have to go meet Damara. I'll take you tommorow."

Tavros looked solemn, he was looking forward to meeting the boy he saw yesterday again. That is, if he were still there.

Then Jesenia spoke, "Don't worry Tavros, Ander and I can take you there."

"Really? Uh, thanks Jesenia!" Tav smiled happily, his face immediately brightening up.

"We're going to the park? Yayyyyy!" Nina yelled, hugging Tavros, Jesenia, and Ander tightly.

Jesenia smiled and hugged back, pulling her hair into a bun. "Don't mention it!"


	4. Chickadee

Tavros's stomach lurched slightly as the car began moving. He'd always had some car sickness, but it usually wore off after a few minutes. His wheelchair was already packed into the trunk, and he had snapped himself in the seat. Ander was driving, since Jesenia hadn't gotten her driver's license yet. Nina was bouncing up and down in her seat, playing with a toy dinosaur next to him. Tavros simply laid back, waiting for the nausea to pass. He stared out the window, watching the trees pass, listening to the chirping of the various birds they passed by, the jays, the chickadees, the doves, the crows, the occasional owl or raven, the pigeons, the robins, the sparrows, the cardinals, the woodpeckers, the warblers, the finches, the blackbirds, as well as the meow of a cat or the bark of a dog here and there.

His focus snapped back to the car as Ander pulled it to a stop, turning the key to turn it off. He opened his door, and Jesenia opened hers. Jesenia helped Nina out of her booster seat and onto the ground, then she opened the trunk and pulled the wheelchair from it, helping Tavros into the chair, and closing the door behind them. Ander locked the doors with the button on the keys, and followed the rest of the group to the park.

Nina immediately ran off to the play equipment, where many other children were playing. Tavros watched her for a moment, then after spotting the teen he had met yesterday, he wheeled over to him, having a little difficulty in the grass.

"Uh, hi again," Tavros began.

The older teen flinched at the unexpected conversation, then turned towards him, his wide, toothy grin spreading across his painted face. "Oh hey mother fucker, ya keep all up an' startlin' a fucker, man!"

"S-sorry, uh, I guess... So, uh, I never got your name..." Tav stuttered.

"Gamzee. What's yours brother?" he replied, his ever-present smile widening.

"Uh, my name is Tavros. Uh, Tavros Nitram."

"Well, it's nice to fuckin' meet you, Tavbro!" Gamzee announced cheerily.

Tavros smiled, "Yeah, it's nice to meet you too, Gamzee!"

Tavros began attempting to slide out of the wheelchair so he could sit on the ground next to Gamzee, but the chair moved backwards, sliding out from beneath him. Tav fell, but instead of falling on the hard ground, whatever he fell on made a huffing, or honking noise when he landed on it. He soon realized that, to his dismay, Gamzee must've laid down so that he wouldn't fall on a hard surface. He quickly scrambled away, apologizing, "S-s-sorry!"

Gamzee sat up, stretching. "Naw man, it's cool. Bros help bros, ya know? Didn't want ya to all up an' fall an' hurt yourself, brother."

Tavros found himself stuttering more than usual, and his face felt slightly warm. "Uh, th-th-thank you, uh, I think..."

They began conversing, mostly about trivial things such as the shape of the clouds, the chirping of birds, the way the wind crosses their faces. Then they moved onto slightly more personal topics.

"So, where are you from?" Tav asked.

"Just up an' around. Been in the city of Lansing since 2001," Gamzee responded, taking another puff of what could now be discerned as rolled up marijuana. "Think I was all up in New York before then. You?"

"My family moved here from Mexico, about a month before I was born. We've moved around a lot, first it was Arizona, then it was Texas, then it was Tennessee, we were in Florida temporarily, and we've just kind of moved every few years, eventually ending up here," Tavros explained, sighing a little bit.

Gamzee noticed Tav's sigh, and quickly made an attempt to comfort him. "You okay bro? Ya seem a lil' down."

"Yeah, I'm fine." Before Gamzee could speak again, Tavros interrupted. "Why do you wear that face paint?" he inquired.

"I don't like to all up an' talk about it... But it's because of these." Gamzee traced three deep scars that went across his face, from his forehead to his lower jaw, that had somehow escaped Tav's notice.

As soon as he realized he had been staring, Tav quickly averted his gaze, then turning it back to him, he asked, "Where did you get them? If you don't mind me asking..."

Gamzee hissed slightly, "I said I don't like to mother fucking talk about it."

After talking with the strange dark-haired teen for a little longer, he discovered that he was seventeen, and that family was a very touchy subject with him, and he learned of Gamzee's best friend, Karkat. Gamzee, on the other hand, knew pretty much everything about him. He knew his family situation, his dealings with Vriska, how he had lost his legs, everything. However, he had neglected to mention Jade. He never mentioned Jade.

Tavros' dealings with Jade had been a one time thing. It was in Florida when they had met, before he had lost his legs, and Tavros just had a really shitty date with Vriska. He met her at a Starbucks, he just walked into a random one, ordered a steamer, and sat down at a random table. She had tapped him on the shoulder, asking if the seat were available, which it was. The waiter confused them for lovers, since Jade happened to be wearing a dress, and Tavros was still wearing the suit from his crappy date. They talked, and talked, and talked. They spoke with each other until sunset. Then they kissed. It was unexpected for both of them, but they awkwardly enjoyed it. It was, however, extremely awkward. The relationship would never work out for either of them, and though Vriska would never admit it, he knew that both Jade and Vriska would be cut deep for being cheated on, and so would he, for the guilt of it would be too much. So he did the responsible thing, and so did Jade, and decided to end the relationship before it ever started.

"Taaaaav! Tavvy! Tavros! Come on, we have to go home!" Nina demanded, jolting him from his thoughts.

Tavros gave Gamzee a wave and an apologetic smile, before, with Jesenia's help, sliding back into the wheelchair, and wheeling to the car. Gamzee waved back, smiling as well. However, despite his happy and kind demeanor, he had one thought going through his mind. _She's going to pay._


	5. Cuckoo

Tavros wheeled over to one of the nearby coffee shops. He was sure to go into a Bigby, because Vriska seemed to work at every Starbucks in existence. He recognized Karkat from his school, sitting at a table, talking to some people he didn't recognize. He had extremely pale skin, black hair, though it was apparent that he had dyed it. Tavros would never forget those striking crimson eyes. He didn't want to eavesdrop, but he listened in anyway.

"God dammit, where is that asinine fucking asshole clown? He hasn't called, or texted, or even fucking pestered me. I swear I've looked fucking everywhere, and not so much as a fucking honk." Karkat hissed, looking as if he were on the brink of tears.

A formal looking black-haired female in a black long-sleeve and a red skirt spoke up, her voice clear and factual, "Karkat, do not worry. I'm sure that we will find him relatively soon."

A small teen in a large green trench coat, her auburn hair partially covered by a blue kitty hat, purred, "Yeah, don't worry Karkitty! We'll find Gamzee soon!"

Tavros put his head down, he felt guilty for it, but he didn't confide in them about the whereabouts of their friend. He didn't know why, but for whatever reason, he just did not say a word to them.

He began to wheel out, hopefully without alerting anyone. He felt a hand on his shoulder, it belonged to the formal-looking woman.

"You seem to be having some difficulties. Would you like me to escort you to wherever you must go at the current moment?" she inquired, pushing a strand of her jet black hair behind her ear.

Tavros immediately said yes, which he mentally scolded himself for. When she asked him where he needed to go, he thought for a moment then told her that Bigby didn't have the kind he wanted, so he was going to Starbucks instead. This was a lie of course, but he needed someone to talk to, and Vriska was pretty much his only option other than Gamzee, and he wouldn't feel right talking to him.

The woman took him there, telling him her name was Kanaya. He shared his name, and then she left.

Vriska was behind the counter, as usual, her blue-streaked black hair tied back in a ponytail. Her black eye-patch was tied tightly over her left eye, the sight of it causing Tavros to recall how she had lost it.

It had been a day at kindergarten. She, he, and Dave were in Texas, as that was where they lived at the time. Tav was playing in the sandbox, when he heard a scream. He turned, to see Vriska lying on the ground, her eye bleeding profusely. Dave was nearby, carrying a crow, his face adorning the dumb anime shades his brother had given him. Apparently the crow had randomly swooped down, stealing her eye with his claws. Dave decided to keep the crow, said it would be a reminder of one of the best days of his life.

The condescending voice of none other than Vriska Serket herself snapped him out of his thoughts. "Hey Toreadumbass!"

Tav wheeled over to the counter, "Uh, hey Vriska... What's up?"

"Not much... Though that's not really what matters. What _does_ matter is that you can't get up. Well, I suppose you aren't really that important either, Legless," Vriska shrugged.

Tavros sighed, coming here was a bad idea. "Vriska, have you ever heard the saying 'if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all?'"

Vriska snorted, "Of course I have, who hasn't seen Bambi eighty times in a fucking row. But no one really listens to that stupid rabbit anyway. Besides, it's fun to take advantage of cripples."

Tavros hissed, it was time he started having even the slightest amount of confidence. "You know, if you stopped being a backstabbing giant bitch you'd actually have some real friends. This is exactly _why_ I broke up with you, along with the whole 'pushing me off a cliff' part."

"Who needs friends when you have such wonderful pawns to play with? And I don't need your pitiful crippled ass trailing behind me anyway, clinging to me where ever I go," Vriska sneered, staying strong despite the break up comment that always managed to sting her.

Tavros sighed again, it was obvious he wouldn't win this argument. "Fine, you can keep on being heartless, for all I care," he said, wheeling away.

"Aw, no big bad Rufioh here to protect you? Shame, it seems he's too busy being a boy toy to take care of his crippled little brother," she interrogated, knowing full well this would certainly put him on edge.

Hissing, Tavros turned around and punched Vriska in the face, "No one talks about my family like that."

Surprised, Vriska rubbed her lower jaw where he had punched her, giving Tavros the time he needed to escape the building. "Damn," she huffed.


	6. Duckling

Tavros wheeled around angrily. Not really aiming to go anywhere in particular, just not here. He was lulled back into a sense of calm by the repetitive circular motion his arms made as he moved his wheelchair. He ceased when he felt the wheels stalling on grass. He look around, realizing he had reached the park. He also suddenly took notice of the water that had begun to fall from the darkening clouds. And, looking towards the tree by the edge, he realized that Gamzee happened to be there as well, smoking like he always was.

Tav sighed and wheeled over to him, "It's starting to rain, you should go home."

Gamzee turned towards him, looking at him quizzically, "Ain't got nowhere to go, mother fucker."

Tavros expression changed to one of confusion, "What do you mean?"

"I ain't got no home to go back to. That's why I'm here."

Tav didn't know how to respond to that. Eventually he replied with "You know, I'm sure my family wouldn't mind if you stayed with us."

Gamzee looked at him "Ya sure? I wouldn't want to be a fuckin' bother or some shit."

Tav couldn't help uttering a slight laugh, "You'd have to turn down the swearing but other than that I doubt they'd mind." The rain picked up a lot, starting to pour, eliciting a partial shrug from the Makara.

Tav frowned a bit, then grinned, "Come on, at least stay for tonight. You'll freeze to death in this weather," tugging on Gamzee's torn attire slightly.

Gamzee stood up, "Sure, why not?"

The older boy took hold of the handles on Tavros' chair, "Which way is it?"

Tavros pointed him in the direction. Not really minding the rain that was now pouring down hard.

It wasn't long before they reached their destination. Tav turned the knob and opened the door, while Gamzee pushed him inside. "Mom, I'm home! I brought a friend, is that alright?"

His mother arrived, assuring him that it was, also telling the Makara where Tavros's room was, who promptly picked him up out of his chair and carried him up to his room. This, of course, surprised the Nitram, and his face reddened as a squeak reached its way out of his mouth.

"So, this is the one, ain't it?" Gamzee asked, and Tavros nodded as they entered his room. Gamzee set him down onto his bed and went back down to retrieve his chair, returning shortly thereafter. 

"So, uh... Welcome home.."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's so short, but I may as well give you this.


End file.
